I wonder if this was a conscious reference to the ending of The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), in which Barbara Steele is still locked in an iron maiden after the rest of the remaining cast leaves the dungeon. Probably not, but cool if true.

Can any bridge players here explain the significance of the comment Nikki makes about the-something-of-clubs, etc., right after Mr. Wrench cuts down the rifle barrel? (I'm assuming that was a bridge reference…)

She also played Mary Todd Lincoln in Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter — although, as much as I love MEW, I'm not sure that can rationalize watching the movie.

That's a possibility, but I've thinking about it from the opposite angle: that Sy and Emmet are now hoping to sell the business to the Widow Goldfarb as a way of getting rid of the Varga problem, hoping he'll just attach himself to her instead. So far she's had a pretty nebulous function. Interesting to see how (or…

I agree, but they did flirt with it a bit in the sex tape sequence.

Another 'Grifters' association for me: Nikki's beating in last week's episode made me think of the Pat Hingle/Angelica Huston "towel full of oranges" scene, just the idea of going for the midsection and not leaving marks in more visible places. Of course, the oranges were never actually applied in The Grifters.

There probably wouldn't be anything of substance about Gloria online. Remember that she doesn't use computers at all, either personally or in her police work.

There's definitely an absence of small intimacies — a hand on a shoulder or around a waist, a kiss now and then, even a romantic glance. It's almost as if they were…married.

I agree, and thought Jimmy would say just that. Guess he decided to just let his anger at Chuck rule the moment. He might have made one hell of a new enemy (Rebecca), though. We'll have to see how this plays out.

This bugged me, too. It was probably a continuity error, but I love this show so much I'll assume that Mike went home first.

Sorry. I failed to discern the sarcasm as well. Call it a symptom of TWD having too many damn characters spread too thin. It took me 6 months to realized that Aaron and Spencer were different people.

Heath was the Alexandrian — dreadlocks, glasses — who got separated from Tara during the "Sand Walkers" episode and hasn't been seen since, presumably because he landed a part on 24 Legacy.

I think it was character-driven, if in fits and starts. Problem for me is that too often the more interesting characters — Shane, Andrea, Glenn, Herschel, Merle, Tyreese — get killed off and the remaining good ones — Carol, Daryl, Michonne, Morgan — end up with what amount to cameo appearances. TWD has just spread…

Mine pees on the carpet every time it sees another CGI tiger on TV.

I don't know the comic so forgive my ignorance, but does it give Negan a backstory? I can't remember hearing anything about his pre-apocalypse identity on the show, whereas it did provide some background on the Governor. Not asking for any spoilers; just curious.

She said earlier (can't believe I actually paid attention) that there was a blueberry bush outside the walls that she wanted to transplant inside. Fair enough, but if she had brought a shovel instead of a trowel she would've had the thing dug out before Gregory had time to call her Margaret.

And she's doing double-duty these days as Robert Aldrich's assistant on The Feud: Bette and Joan.

Yes! Great to see "Svetlana" again after all these years, one of my favorites in The Sopranos cast. She deserves far more screen work than she apparently gets.

So true. Once the narrative rhythm is gone the emotional connections go with it.

Yes ! You've uncannily echoed all the thoughts I had about this episode, rendering any further commentary on my part unnecessarily redundant and needlessly without purpose. And yet, I do like seeing my avatar appear among the comments…